Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Ricci Taylor. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Ricci, thanks for joining us today. Being a business owner can be really hard sometimes. It’s rewarding, but most business owners we’ve spoken sometimes think about what it would have been like to have had a regular job instead. Have you ever wondered that yourself? Maybe you can talk to us about a time when you felt this way?

I think success and happiness are different for everyone. The meaning of success and happiness has definitely changed for me as I’ve gotten older. To me, being able to live a life worth living – while creating with a group of like-minded individuals, who value work life balance – that’s success to me. That’s happiness. It hasn’t been all rainbows and butterflies getting here. I know there will continue to be hard days. But good things don’t come easy.

One thing I do know, is that since the moment I took the courage to take a risk, and jumped into my dream, I’ve never looked back. I’ve never regretted the decision. Even on the hardest days, I’d never trade what I do for a 9-5, working for people who don’t value the same things I do. Getting to go to work everyday because I want to, not because I have to, that’s the dream. Being able to provide jobs for people I love, and knowing they have a better life with their families, motivates me on the hard days.

It’s not about money. It’s about quality of life, and loving what you do. Being a business owner has been, and continues to be, one of my biggest purposes in life. It makes me so happy. I feel fortunate to work alongside an amazing team, helping families who trust us with the sale of their biggest asset. I’m so grateful for it all.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

Well, my name is Ricci Taylor. I’m the founder of Everly Design Co, a female-owned home staging company based in Atlanta.

I started Everly in Denver in 2015. As a realtor, I saw the value in home staging when selling a property. On average, staged homes sell for 4-5% more than unstaged homes; which is a great return on investment for homeowners, especially given the speed of service we provide. Pretty quickly, my side hustle became my dream job. Within a few months, I was staging more than selling real estate!

Five years later, Everly was becoming really successful, so I decided to relocate to my home town, Atlanta, to be closer to my family. My best friend Kelley also joined me as a business partner.

Fast forward to today: we’ve grown our small business from a party of one to a team of thirteen. We stage over 300 homes a year, and have helped sell hundreds of millions in real state.

We’ve expanded and diversified the Everly brand, making the most of our warehouse full of furniture and accessories. Now, as well as staging homes, we also now run a successful prop shop – Everly Props – where set designers in Atlanta can rent props for movies, tv shows and commercial shoots. It’s been amazing to be a part of the booming film industry in Georgia, and work on projects with big brands like Coca-Cola.

We also recently launched ‘Shoppe Everly’, a platform for local artists that we use in our stagings to promote and sell their work. Plus, we also lease our inventory to realtors, as well as other home staging companies in Atlanta. I’d like to think that’s what sets us apart. We truly believe in co-operation over competition.

Can you tell us the story behind how you met your business partner?

I met my business partner, Kelley in the 4th grade… cheerleading! Kelley was so inclusive and welcoming, I knew right away that I wanted to be her friend! That’s also how I met Emily, the director of operations at Everly.

All three of us have grown up and gone through so much together: college, marriage, kids and business. We’ve always been there for each other.

The three of us are very different, so we bring a variety of perspectives to the business. That’s why I believe we’ve been so successful, and managed to keep innovating and growing the Everly brand.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

I think any business owner at some point in their journey has to show resilience.

You have to have a bit of grit and determination in order to do something so risky.

Not only did I put my real estate career on hold to pour my energy into a staging company, but I also chose to uproot my successful company in Denver and move to Atlanta in the midst of the pandemic (insane, I know).

We grew really fast, which resulted in us making quick hiring decisions. We misplaced our trust in some of the people we brought onboard. We were taken advantage of at times, and lost money. But you know what? You can’t grow and learn without making mistakes. I’m sure we’ll make some more!

However, we’ve grown along with the business. We’ve learnt from our mistakes, and have become more resilient and efficient as a result.

The more time you work on something, the more mistakes you’re going to inevitably make; and the more you’re going to learn and grow. All we can do is keep trying, and even if we fall – we reflect, and then move forward stronger and smarter than we were before.
I mean that’s what life is all about isn’t it?

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.everlyhomestaging.com
• Instagram: Everly_homestaging.ATL

Image Credits

Keith Hirsch – (team photo)
Daniel Stabler – (interior photos)